Personal Maps
Personal Maps are a visual exercise to help team members understand each other's backgrounds, interests, and values. By creating and sharing these maps, individuals build empathy and strengthen connections, improving collaboration and trust.
Use this method to onboard new team members, kick off a project, or address communication barriers within a team. It's particularly useful when team members have limited knowledge of each other's personal and professional lives.
Solves: Lack of understanding and empathy among team members, leading to miscommunication and conflict.
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Step 1: (5 min) Introduce the concept of Personal Maps and explain the benefits of understanding each other better.
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Step 2: (20 min) Instruct each participant to create their own Personal Map, starting with their name in the center and branching out to categories like home, education, work, hobbies, family, friends, goals, and values. Encourage them to add details they feel comfortable sharing.
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Step 3: (25 min) Facilitate a sharing session where each person presents their map to the team, answering questions and elaborating on key points.
- Encourage participants to be creative and use visuals to represent their information.
- Emphasize that participants should only share what they are comfortable with.
- Create a safe and supportive environment for sharing.
- Team Celebration Map: Focus on team accomplishments and shared experiences.
- Values Map: Center the map around personal and professional values.